GOOGLE:
Pros: Good place to start when you are just beginning research on a topic
Cons: Provides you with very broad search results, which can easily overwhelm you with information.

WIKIPEDIA:
Pros: Really good place to get an overview of a topic or a certain issue. You can often use the sources at the bottom of each article to begin you research.
Cons: Wikipedia usually isn’t accepted as a credible source in most classes. You’ll need to use Wikipedia as a place for idea-generation, then search for more scholarly, academic sources.

GOOGLE SCHOLAR:
Pros: It will gather scholarly articles and resources, while being a little less intimidating than the library’s database.
Cons: You have to be connected to the campus network to open and view some of the articles. It doesn’t offer as many options to refine your search as the library’s database does.

LIBRARY ACADEMIC DATABASE:
Pros: It has a HUGE body of information you can pull from, and it has access to thousands of journals and other academic resources.
Cons: It can be a bit scary and overwhelming to navigate.Video Rating: / 5

This video covers concepts related to searching within academic research databases, using EBSCO’s Academic Search Complete and ProQuest Central as examples. Concepts covered are: using the advanced search, limiters, Boolean operators, citing from a database, and more. Concepts related to information literacy and research skills are covered.

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